Week 1 started Thursday with South Carolina thumping So. Miss by a 41-13 count as a 13-point home favorite. The Gamecocks were playing without four of their best players, including TE Weslye Saunders, LB Shaq Wilson, FS Chris Culliver and OT Jarriel King, but they looked extremely sharp nonetheless.

Junior quarterback Stephen Garcia and freshman RB Marcus Lattimore ran for two touchdowns apiece. Lattimore, a true freshman dubbed as the best prep RB in the nation by most recruitniks last year, looked ‘as advertised’ and actually reminded me of a different No. 21 that used to play for Steve Spurrier (Fred Taylor).

Also, freshman wide receiver Ace Sanders had a 53-yard run on a reverse and two receptions for 47 yards. Alshon Jeffery, who I think is a legit All-American candidate, hauled in seven catches for 106 yards.

Culliver, King and Saunders were suspended and it remains unclear if any of those players will be available in a crucial SEC East showdown vs. Georgia next week. Wilson was sidelined with a hamstring injury and is not expected to play against the Dawgs.

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Utah extended its home winning streak to 18 games in a 27-24 overtime win over Pittsburgh. There’s no telling what result bettors had in this game because the Utes were favored by 2 ½ at a lot of books in the days leading up to the game. The line moved to three and even as high as 3 ½ at some spots on Thursday. I had the Utes at minus three and had to settle for the push.

In the late-night game Thursday, Southern Cal outscored Hawaii 49-36 in the debut of Lane Kiffin. The Warriors comfortably covered the number as 20 ½-point underdogs. Matt Barkley threw for 257 yards and five touchdowns without being intercepted.

The total fell from as high as 54 early Thursday afternoon to 50 ½ at most books by kickoff. Obviously, the ‘over’ was an easy winner when the Trojans and Warriors combined to score 85 points.

The early action on Saturday afternoon was highlighted by Jacksonville State’s stunning 49-48 win at Ole Miss in double overtime. Trailing 31-13 going into the fourth quarter, the Gamecocks outscored the Rebels 21-3 to force OT.

Ole Miss scored first in the second extra session and forced JSU into a fourth-and-15 situation, but that’s when Coty Blanchard scrambled to his right and threw a perfect pass to Kevyn Cooper in the back of the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown pass.

Veteran head coach Jack Crowe, who was fired by Arkansas after losing to The Citadel in 1992, then elected to go for two, which was great decision regardless of the result. On the two-point conversion, the Rebels brought a blitz and it appeared that Blanchard was dead to rights. However, he somehow found a way to dump the ball off to Calvin Middleton as he was being hit. Middleton did the rest, launching himself into the end zone to complete the come-from-behind win.

Crowe was emotional at the postgame presser, telling the media, “If you stay in this long enough, it goes both ways.”

Houston Nutt said, “Without a doubt, this is the worst loss of my career.”

Jeremiah Masoli made his much-anticipated debut for the Rebels, leading both scoring drives in overtime. He didn’t start after winning his eligibility appeal on Friday. Masoli completed 7-of-10 passes for 109 yards and one interception. He had five rushes for 29 yards.

Florida pulled away from Miami (OH.) in the fourth quarter to capture a 34-12 victory, but the Red Hawks took the cash as 38-point underdogs. The Gators were atrocious offensively for the first three quarters, netting just 25 yards in the first 47 minutes of the game. They had eight fumbles and QB John Brantley had to deal with horrible snaps from out of the shotgun all day.

The ‘under’ was a winner when the 46 combined points fell below the 54-point tally.

UF will host South Florida at The Swamp in Week 2.

The Aaron Murray Era in Athens got off to a solid start. The Tampa Plant High School product threw for 160 yards and three TDs to lead Georgia to a 55-7 win over Louisiana as a 29 ½-point favorite.

Late Sunday afternoon, most books opened South Carolina as a 2 ½-point favorite over UGA.

We’ll stop well short of saying Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez is off the hot seat in Ann Arbor, but the 2010 campaign got off on the right foot when the Wolverines trounced UConn 30-10 as three-point home favorites.

Denard Robinson was the catalyst, accounting for 383 total yards and a pair of touchdowns. He rushed for 197 yards and completed 19-of-22 passes. Michigan plays at Notre Dame in Week 2.

The Joker Phillips Era at Kentucky got underway in a Governor’s Cup battle against Louisville. The Wildcats ruined Charlie Strong’s debut by winning a 23-16 decision as three-point road favorites.

We mentioned UF’s struggles, but perhaps Oklahoma was even worse? The Sooners survived a game bunch from Utah St., prevailing 31-24 as 34 ½-point favorites. DeMarco Murray had 218 rushing yards and a pair of TDs on 35 carries. Bob Stoops’ team will face FSU in Norman this weekend.

TCU-Oregon St. and UNC-LSU did not disappoint in the prime-time games. The Horned Frogs beat the Beavers 30-21, but OSU hooked up its backers as 13-point underdogs. Meanwhile, LSU held off North Carolina 30-24, but the Tar Heels posted the backdoor cover as 7 ½-point underdogs.

Butch Davis’ bunch was crippled by the suspensions of 13 players, but it rallied from a 30-10 halftime deficit and had a chance to win in the final moments. In fact, UNC had two passes into the end zone that fell incomplete to end the game.

Wisconsin dropped UNLV 41-21 at Sam Boyd Stadium, but the Rebels ruined the trip to Vegas for Badger fans, covering the spread by one as 21-point home underdogs. In the other late-night game, Fresno St. beat Cincy 28-14 as a 2 ½-point home favorite.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

--Florida played without three starters along the offensive line (Carl Johnson, Xavier Nixon and Matt Patchan) and safety Will Hill. Johnson and Hill were serving one-game suspensions and are expected to be back in the lineup against the Bulls this Saturday. Nixon and Patchan are question marks with lingering injuries.

--Georgia head coach Mark Richt held out WR A.J. Green for precautionary purposes due to a lingering NCAA investigation into potential contact with an agent. His status for Saturday’s game at South Carolina remains in question.

--Best Week 2 Games:
1-Miami at Ohio St.
2-Georgia at South Carolina
3-FSU at Oklahoma
4-Penn St. at Alabama
5-Auburn at Mississippi St.

--Most books open Oklahoma -8.5 vs. FSU, South Carolina -2.5 vs UGA, Auburn -2.5 at Miss St., Ohio St. -9.5 vs. Miami and ‘Bama -11 vs. PSU.

Brian Edwards can be reached at briane@vegasinsider.com.

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